


Cherry Blossoms and Sunflowers

by wetdandelions



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Bullying, Closeted Character, Famous Harry, Famous Louis, Famous Zayn, Fluff, M/M, Pining, Song Lyrics, Symbolism, Tattoos, Wedding Fluff, X-Factor - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-10-22
Updated: 2015-10-22
Packaged: 2018-04-27 12:49:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5049232
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/wetdandelions/pseuds/wetdandelions
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Harry's whole life has always been about Louis. Luckily enough, it's mutual.</p><p>prompt: Harry really likes cherry blossoms because they smell pretty and are soft and pink but when he's seven years old a boy moves in next door and Harry thinks maybe now he likes sunflowers even more.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Cherry Blossoms and Sunflowers

**Author's Note:**

> Hi hi, if you read this before it was when it was on my other account whitedandelions ^^. It was for an exchange. Hope it's alright to reupload it...(not trying to step on any toes here just want it off my main). That's all. Sorry it's no smut Dx.

Harry's always been fascinated with cherry blossoms.  He thinks they're pretty, what with their hue of pink, their soft petals, and their pretty smell.  He wants to decorate his whole house with them when he's older.  Whenever the posh library near them puts on the cherry blossom festival, he always begs his mother to take him and she always gives in whenever he uses his best puppy dog eyes. 

By the time he's seven, he's been to two of them and they make up most of his pictures in his photo album.   Other flowers don't interest him; for him, only cherry blossoms matter and nothing else. 

So when a family next door moves in and his mother brings him over with her to offer a freshly baked apple pie as a welcome gift, he wrinkles his nose when he sees the vibrant sunflower set in a vase on the floor.  He thinks sunflowers are ugly; they're garish with their gaudy yellow and the inside circle is what nightmares are made out of. 

His mother and the woman who opened the door are still chatting warmly and he's sullenly staring at the abomination that is a sunflower when a boy comes skidding into the picture.  He's breathless, with a streak of mud on his cheek and his feathery hair a mess of sweat, but he's still utterly fascinating to watch.  He's panting and the woman makes a sound of distress before suddenly laughing when the boy buries his face into her dress.

"Here's my son, Louis," she says between her giggles, and Harry watches as the boy leans back and beams up at her.  His smile is brilliant, and Harry finds himself comparing it to the bright yellow of the sunflower still present in the room.  It's sunny, that's what it is.  "He's seven, and really, a little monster."

Anne laughs, utterly charmed, "Harry's seven, too!  I'm sure they'll get along fabulously."

Harry aims a betrayed look at his mum, but is startled out of pouting when the boy's bright blue eyes train onto his. 

"What's that?" he mouths, pointing at the cherry blossom that Harry had weaved into his hair.

"It's a cherry blossom," he settles for answering.

A smile crosses the boy's face, "It's pretty.  But sunflowers are way cooler."

"Ew," whispers Harry, his face an expression of pure distress, "they're scary."

Louis stares at him blankly for a second, and Harry hurriedly backtracks, worrying he offended the boy.  But Louis throws his head back and laughs gleefully.

"You're funny, Harry," whispers Louis back, and when Louis slings his arm around his neck, Harry thinks that this is the start to something great - even with the garish sunflower still in his view.

* * *

Elementary school is fun.  Even though Louis spends recess playing footie with the boys and Harry spends it looking at flowers with the girls, they still get along rather fabulously.  Recess is only twenty minutes of the day, after all, and Harry and Louis spend all of daycare together.  Their parents work late, so it's really only expected to stay at school after classes end.  They play make believe with their imagination, drive their mothers crazy by their dirtied clothes when they go home for the day, and spend hours just playing on the playground.

Middle school is decidedly not as fun.  It becomes weird to hang out with the girls when one of them tries to hold his hand, and he spends recess with Louis instead.  And while he loves spending them with Louis, Harry is really, really abysmal at football.  The other boys aren't mean, but they do give Louis the side-eye when Louis picks Harry first every time he's captain.  Harry trips over the ball more often than not, and he's pretty sure Louis spends most of the match worrying over whether Harry would finally sprain his ankle this time.  He eventually sits on the sidelines and watches them play, and has a lot more fun that way.  The boys warm up to him, and Harry finds himself one of the boys despite the fact that he still thinks they're really rather boring.  He amuses himself by watching how the other boys revolve around Louis, soaking up in his attention and preening whenever Louis dishes out a compliment. 

Louis doesn't change, and when high school finally comes around, Harry's almost sure Louis will be one of the 'popular' boys.  Harry never really understood popularity, but he thinks he's rather spoiled in that concept.  He's never lonely, not with Louis always there for him, and he's never really needed to have more friends than Louis.  He enjoys talking with other people, learning their backstories and what makes them tick, but if he could, he would only spend his time with Louis.

Since he's really rather sheltered thanks to Louis' overprotection, he's rather thrown for a loop when the bullying starts.  It's not bad, really, just a few snide remarks for the pink sweaters he wears and the cherry blossoms he still weaves into his curls.   Their classmates from middle school don't follow them to high school, so everywhere Harry turns, he sees unfamiliar faces. 

Gemma, his older sister by three years, sits him down one day, and gently breaks it to him that there are rumors because of the stuff he wears and the color he paints his nails.  She looks regretful, almost as if she's extremely disappointed in him, and Harry says so when there's a lull in the conversation.  Gemma bursts into tears at his words and Harry follows suit, and they spend a long moment crying.  People are stupid, she says, and she explains to him that he has two choices.  He could be himself, and risk the bullying and the whispers, or he can conform to fit the crowd. 

He wears Louis' clothes the next day at school, scrubs his nails till they're sparklingly clean and clear, and throws away the cherry blossoms in his room.   Louis' eyes are soft when they see him, and he sidles up close to Harry with a small grin on his face.

"Are those mine?" he teases, pinching the sleeve of Harry's t-shirt with two of his fingers .  "I was wondering where they've gone, you twat, have you been stealing my clothes again?"

Harry's nervous, and he just shakes his head at Louis' inquiries, his eyes on the people around them.  They don't seem to notice the change in him; it's really rather worrying to think that he changed so much and they don't even care.

Louis notices his lack of attention and pokes him hard in the side. "Don't ignore me, Hazza!"              

Harry shoots his best friend an irritated look, "Stop, Lou."

Louis blinks, before drawing his mouth into a stern frown.  "Okay, spill.  What's bothering you?"

Harry scoffs, "Like you'll care."

"And what's that supposed to mean?" asks Louis, exasperated.

"I haven't even seen you at school since Monday!"

Louis' eyebrows raise, "But I saw you at dinner yesterday?  Are you really that lonely without me, Harry?  And maybe if you'll come to my football practice after school...I mean, it's not like you minded in middle school.  It's been proper difficult without my number 1 cheerleader, after all." 

Harry makes a frustrated noise, "You're not getting it."

"That's why I'm asking!" defends Louis, definitely looking annoyed now.  "Are you jealous?"

"Jealous!?" Harry rears back, glaring daggers at his best friend.

"Yeah," ribs Louis, "because I've got so many new friends and all."

"You utter prat," mutters Harry, darkly, slamming his locker close with a bang.  He stalks away without a glance back and isn't surprised when Louis doesn't follow.  He's not hurt by it; Louis had learned long ago that it's better to let Harry calm down before approaching him again.  Still, he had hoped that this one time it would be different.

Louis finds him in his room after dinner, sulking and regretting the fact that he had thrown away all his cherry blossoms.  Harry turns away as soon as Louis enters, still smarting from their fight earlier in the day.  "Of course Mum would let you in," he mutters angrily.

"I'm her favorite," quips Louis lightly, but the way he gets into bed behind Harry is anything but.  Harry melts into Louis' embrace, enjoying being the little spoon a little bit too much.  Harry likes touch and he likes cuddles, but he's still angry at Louis.

"Stop it," he says, twisting in Louis' arms in an attempt to throw Louis off.  Louis is stronger than him though and when he finally succeeds in ridding one of Louis' arms around him, Louis just moves it back a second later.  He admits defeat, stewing silently and trying to not enjoy the closeness of his best friend.

"You should have told me," accuses Louis when a few minutes pass.

Harry bristles, "Well, maybe you should have noticed."

"Aren't you being a bit unfair?" grumbles Louis. 

"No," Harry shoots back immediately.

Louis sighs, long and drawn out, and despite himself Harry giggles.  Louis smiles into his hair and tightens his grip around Harry's middle.  "They're stupid, Harry.  You should be able to wear what you want and do what you want."

"It's not normal, Lou," whispers Harry.  "I'm not normal."

"Normal is boring.  Who wants to be normal?  I mean, I'm pretty sure my obsession with football is anything but normal."

"It is, though.  You're like the other boys and they don't pick on you."

Louis stiffens behind him, "I could've done something if I knew, Harry.  If they do it again..."

"Oh, Lou," sighs Harry, one of his hands tightening on Louis' arm.  "You can't protect me from everything."

"But I want to," whispers Louis, so soft Harry almost missed it.

"Thanks, Lou."

They fall into silence, and Harry takes comfort in the fact that Louis is behind him, solid and real.  When Louis disentangles himself from Harry an hour later, Harry startles awake from the light doze he was in.  He hears some sounds from Louis' general direction, and jumps when there's a loud crash and some soft curses. 

"Lou?"

The sounds pause and he hears footsteps fast approaching him.  He feels Louis' hands in his hair, petting his curls, "Go back to sleep, Harry.  I'll see you tomorrow."

Harry finds himself obeying, drifting off into a fitful sleep.

* * *

Louis finds him in front of his locker again, his voice rough but easily recognizable.

"Close your eyes," he commands.

Harry scowls, but obeys, pausing in his rummaging of his locker.   There's light pressure on top of his head, and he feels Louis' hands in his curls. 

Harry opens his eyes when Louis whispers he can, and dutifully obeys when Louis points at the mirror in his locker.  A crown made out of sunflower petals sit on top of his head, and Louis' abashed smile is visible in the background.

Harry's heart swells even as his stomach drops and he's reaching up to remove it a second later.  Louis catches on and grabs his wrists, and Harry shivers at the tight grip.

"I can't, Lou.  They'll make fun of me."

"They won't," says Louis.  "And if they do, then screw them.  I'll be here every step of the way."

That's when Harry notices Louis' outfit.  "Did you get that from my closet?"

"Guilty," admits Louis, but he's still beaming.  He's decked out in one of Harry's pink sweaters and his nails are painted a pale pink.   "You didn't even notice," he continues, still grinning, "I could probably rob you and you wouldn't even wake up."

"You prat," laughs Harry, but the butterflies in his stomach make it difficult to even pretend to be mad at Louis.  "Lou," he starts, and isn't surprised when Louis shakes his head.

"I told you I'll protect you, alright?"

"I don't even like sunflowers," he mumbles, even as his heart threatens to burst out of love for his best friend.

"Ungrateful," grumbles Louis, "normal people don't have cherry blossoms laying around you know.  You should just be happy that I asked Lottie for help or else I would've just stuck one of them behind your ear.  Imagine how that would've looked."

Harry laughs, utterly charmed, and he reaches forward to tug Louis into a hard embrace.   "Thank you," he whispers, and he listens attentively to the fast beat of Louis' heart.

He still doesn't like sunflowers, but maybe, just maybe the garish yellow isn't as bad as he thought it was.

* * *

Surprisingly, Louis' gesture works out.  Harry starts sitting with Louis and his football mates during lunch, and he ends up going to every practice and game.  He finds out later that Gemma had pulled some strings and walks in on Gemma thanking Louis tearfully on Friday.  Louis looks embarrassed so he barges in and lets Gemma pull them both into a hard embrace.

School ends up being easy after that, almost as nice as it was in middle school.  Harry even makes some friends of his own, and ends up on the Gardening committee by the time the school year finishes. 

They're both sixteen when Harry convinces Louis to try out for the X-Factor with him.  Singing's not a huge thing to them, but they do end up singing a lot more than normal people whenever they're alone together.   Louis thinks they should have separate auditions, convinced that Harry is a better singer than he. 

Harry protests, and they argue over it for a couple of weeks until Harry declares that he isn't going to audition at all if Louis isn't up there next to him.

"You have a nice voice, Lou," he had said, a bit adamantly, "and we're better together than we are apart.  And besides I'll be too terrified to stand up there without you."

Louis had sighed, "You're going to make me embarrass myself," but he agreed to it in the end.

Even though it isn't a duet, Harry convinces Louis to sing 'Isn't she Lovely' with him, and Louis agrees rather easily with a short quip about how obsessed Harry is with babies.  Which isn't an untrue statement considering how much time he spends with Louis' little sisters.

Their moms, Gemma, and Lottie are backstage when they go on, and Louis is quivering nervously next to him.  The crowd is huge, but Harry doesn't feel nervous because Louis is a solid presence.  Simon doesn't look amused when he sees them, and he says something about how duos aren't meant to go very far at all.  Harry ignores him, and grips Louis' hand tight when his face falters at Simon's words.

They get three yeses.

Time seems to pass in a blur.  They spend hours choosing their next songs, this time aiming for songs that actually make sense for a duet.  The first time Louis gets complimented on his unique singing voice, he turns a bright red and buries his face into Harry's shoulder.  The second time he preens happily, his confidence built up by their continued existence in the competition.

Their video dairies are a breeze to get through, their natural camadarie showing through the short videos.  They're the fan favorites, and it isn't long before shipping starts.  Louis learns of it first and Harry drops everything he's holding when Louis tells him the details.  Louis thinks it's hilarious despite Harry's continuing embarrassment and plays it up whenever a camera is trained on them.  Harry tries not to think too hard on the way it continues to shake him up, and tries to act normal whenever Louis wraps an arm around his waist.  He nearlydies when Louis grabs his face in his hands and kisses him hard on his cheek.

They win first place.

They're given a flat, and Louis is an abysmal flatmate.  Harry can't find himself minding, cleaning up after Louis and making sure their meals are tasty, but healthy.

They tour for a good two years, their singles hitting the top of the charts and one of their albums winning a Grammy.  Louis writes most of their songs while Harry supplies him with good food and supportive words.  Harry's awful at writing, and Louis just laughs fondly at him whenever he tries to help. 

Harry realizes he's in love with Louis after their first single is released.  He's been in denial ever since Louis had first learned about Larry Stylinson and after admitting it to himself, he feels loads lighter.  Louis starts hanging out with a girl named Eleanor Calder, and Harryhates her.  They don't talk about her really, and Louis hardly even goes out to see her which Harry is baffled about.  But it works for them and most of the time Harry forgets she even exists.

Their time as a duo only helps develop their relationship.  They both love touring, and the songs they create are soft and sound best with a guitar. 

They have a small break on their tour when Harry comes across a small tattoo parlor.  Louis is out with Eleanor, and the intense ache in his heart makes him enter the building.  He had been thinking about a tattoo for a long time now; he had wanted one since he was seven.  He only wonders for a moment if he should tell Louis about his sudden urge, before turning his phone off and deciding on detailed drawing of a sunflower on his right bicep.

It hurts, but it's like imprinting Louis permanently onto his skin, so it's easy to put up with the pain.

"You hate sunflowers," is Louis' first response to it.  His blue eyes are comically large and Harry laughs at his face. 

"No," he says, patting Louis on the arm with affection, "I haven't hated them since I was seven."

"You said you thought they were scary!" he protests, and Harry just laughs as he walks away.

The fans go crazy when he wears a sleeveless shirt the next time they perform.  The sunflower is bright and yellow on his bicep and the lights make it stand out.  He absolutely loves it, and he catches Louis staring at it more than once. 

"You thinking about one, too?" he asks, playfully, during an intermission. 

Louis is transfixed and he mutely shakes his head.  Harry's confused, but he's able to play it off.  "Of course not," he teases, "you're never going to get a tattoo because you're scared of the pain." 

Louis' eyes spark at that, and he's scowling, "You take that back, Harold.  I'm not scared of anything."

Harry laughs delightedly, but the feeling of wrongness stays there.

It persists through the next few performances, compounded by Louis' weird behavior off stage.  He disappears more and more often, papped in clubs with Eleanor.  Harry stays in and watches romantic chick flicks and plays board games with the band.

It comes to a head when the more zealous fans find unseen footage of him from back when they were still in the X-Factor.  Harry had nearly forgotten about it; they were only sixteen back then and it seemed like a lifetime ago.  She had asked him how he felt about Louis, and Harry had called Louis his sunflower.

The thing is even two years later, the Larry Stylinson shipping is still going strong, made even more so by the fact that they share hotel rooms when they're on the road and still live in the same flat together.  Eleanor's presence hardly makes a dent in their shipping; in fact, it only makes it worse.  Louis doesn't ever really talk about her and he hasn't even confirmed that they're together yet. 

Louis disappears for a whole day, and Harry nearly loses his mind with worry.  Louis comes into their flat at ten o'clock at night, his eyes blazing, his feathery fringe ruined beyond belief, and his jacket missing.

"You've been driving me crazy," starts Louis.  "I keep on thinking, why would you tattoo yourself with a sunflower when your favorite flower is a cherry blossom?  Sunflowers are my favorite.  So I got yours."

Harry blinks, confused at the fast stream of words emptying from Louis' mouth and he's completely gobsmacked when Louis removes his shirt to show off the detailed drawing on his left bicep.  A cherry blossom, with the pink hue he loves so much, stands out clearly on Louis' skin and Harry hesitantly reaches forward to ghost his fingers above it.

"Lou," he breathes out, confused beyond belief.  "This isn't a competition?"

Louis makes a frustrated sound, "Of course not, Harry.  It's just, you got that for me."

Harry can't even deny it, and he ends up nodding.  Louis' eyes become even more intense at his words, and there's only a few moments of tension before Louis is surging forward and pressing his lips against Harry's.

It's a few moments of bliss before he's pulling away.  Louis follows his movement for a second, and when he finally opens his eyes, he looks confused.  It takes all of Harry's willpower to stop himself from leaning in again at the sight of Louis' bitten lips.

"What about Eleanor?"

Louis tilts his head in confusion, "What about her?"

"She's your girlfriend," he says slowly.

"What?  Since when?"

"Since a month ago?"

"You mean you didn't know?  I thought they told you.  The label wanted me to be seen with her in order to steer up popularity for our new album and she's my friend, so..." Louis trails off at his probably gobsmacked look and starts giggling.  "You couldn't possibly think I would date a girl!  You know I'm gay."

"I -"

"Oh god, Harry, you didn't know that either!?" Louis' words ends in a shrill note, and this time it's Louis' time to look completely baffled.

"I didn't want to assume," Harry defends himself.

"Didn't want to assume," repeats Louis, slowly in amazement.  "I wore braces, Harry.  To make my arse look better."

"You never said!" retorts Harry, a hot flush making its way across his cheeks.

"I thought you knew!  It was pretty bloody obvious.  And forgive me if I didn't feel the need to clarify to my secret crush of seven years that I liked boys."

Harry brightens up, "Seven?"

Louis colors red and he buries his face into his hands.  "You weren't supposed to know that."

Harry chuckles, drawing Louis' hands away from his face and leaning forward to pepper his face with small kisses.  Louis' distraught expression persists for only a second before he's giggling again, and it's only seconds later that the kisses become more serious.

"I love you, Lou," he whispers when his lips are pressed against the side of Louis' mouth.

Louis utters a soft sight of contentment, before pressing even closer to Harry.

"Love you, too, Hazza."

* * *

It isn't a secret that Harry likes cherry blossoms.  He still visits the cherry blossom festival every other year or so, and his old photos there make its way onto the Internet eventually.  Harry also makes it a point to wear pink clothing with flowers on it as a homage to his old awkward teenager days, and somehow, he ends up wearing a lot of ones covered in cherry blossoms.

So when Louis shows off his new tattoo, it basically confirms that the two of them are together.  Their management team tells them to neither confirm or deny it, and it works. 

It baffles Harry that some people still couldn't see it.  They had matching tattoos of each other, and Harry starts to serenade Louis every time they're on stage.

It's Louis' idea to take a break.  The thing with Eleanor started out fun, but eventually disintegrates into flames because of the fans' viewing of the girl.  Louis isn't good at pretending, and spends so much more time making fond expressions at Harry that even the fans notice.  There are posts upon posts on tumblr about his face, and Harry enjoys scrolling the 'Harry is Louis' baby' one almost every day.

Their management is terrible.  They're demanding and work them to the bone, and Harry thanks the stars everyday that they only signed on for two years.  By two years, Harry's sick of the lies and the work, and all he wants to do is cuddle with Louis for the rest of his days.  The management didn't see much potential in a duo in the beginning, and didn't want to waste more resources than they have to.  They plead, and beg, and offer copious amounts of incentives to have the two of them sign back on, but both Harry and Louis unanimously decide to call it quits.

They hold one last concert before it's officially over.  They're released from their contracts, and after debating with the numerous contacts they made over the years, they decide to come out with both their sexualities and their relationship with each other before they go.   Since they were quitting, the fall back shouldn't hurt them much especially since Louis and Harry had both decided to go back to their hometown for university.

The fans are getting ready to cheer for an encore when Louis reaches out to grab Harry's right hand.  Harry takes it, trembling, and is strongly reminded of back when they had first auditioned for the X-factor.  He had been scared, just like now, but just like back then, the feel of Louis' hand in his does wonder for his nerves.  Performing countless times still hasn't taken off the edge of a crowd, but when Harry is looking into Louis' clear blue eyes, he doesn't feel afraid.

"We would like to thank you all for your support," starts Louis, and his voice is trembling and his grip is tight.  "I'm always proud to say that we have the best of fans, and it's going to be awful when...when we leave."

The crowd gasps as one, and Louis shudders and his grip becomes almost unbearable.  Harry squeezes back in a sign of comfort before continuing where Louis left off.  "We're going to university and won't be writing for the next few years.  It's been an absolute pleasure performing for you all, and I'll never forget how lucky both Louis and I were to have had this experience."

Louis aims a tearful smile at him, and Harry grins into the microphone, his heart beating erratically.  "Oh, and I'm in love with my sunflower, and have been for a very long time."  And then he's dropping the microphone and grabbing the front of Louis' shirt.  Louis stares at him with a fond expression, even as the microphone emits a loud, painful noise when it hits the ground, and closes his eyes in contentment when Harry presses his lips against his.

The roar of the crowd echoes in his ears, but all Harry could feel is Louis pressed up against him.  It's easy to pretend that they're not in front of thousands of people and that they're still alone in their flat together, and it's all too soon that Louis is gently pushing him away.

"As Harold said," laughs Louis, "I'm in love with my cherry blossom, and bloody hell, that is quite embarrassing to say, H, only you can say that with a straight face.  Thank you for all your support, loves, we'll never forget it."

Before the fans in front of them could riot or do more than stare blankly at the two of them, they're being ushered off stage and into the privacy of the backstage.  Louis' still shaking, but his eyes are shining, and he's pressing into Harry happily.

"We did it," he murmurs into Harry's neck, "We don't have to pretend anymore and I get to keep you all to myself."

Harry just laughs, happy and free, and kisses Louis at least a hundred times before their tour manager tells them to knock it off.

* * *

University is different.  Schedules aren't strict, and Louis spends most of their days lounging around in their small apartment.  Harry thrives in the college environment; he loves going to class, taking exams, and reading textbooks because it's all normal and the two of them haven't had normal in a very long time.  Louis complains constantly about the crazy amount of essays he has to write in order to keep up with his English degree, but Harry knows he loves doing them and actually finishes them two weeks ahead of the deadline.

It's weird, not being on the road and not having to deal with screaming fans.  They don't get recognized half the time; their popularity died as their inactivity continued to flourish and they really only showed up on the news when they were forced to go to Red Carpet events. 

The scandal is huge when they come out, but eventually dies down when it's pointed out that Louis never actually said he was in a relationship with Eleanor.  The paps and the article writers had assumed the rest. 

Their instagrams and their twitters become sickening and the day their relationship comes out, Louis tweets "Always in my heart, @Harry_Styles.  Yours sincerely, Louis."   It gets more than a million retweets in a sign of a support, and even now the two of them are still getting notifications for it.  Harry retweets it and adds in "Sap," but he tweets a picture of a sunflower a second later, so the fans know he isn't one to talk. 

Their mothers are ecstatic, and Harry's mother is the worst in the amount of tweets she sends out talking about "Louis, the perfect son-in-law."  It's enough to make him blush whenever the tweets come up on his phone screen, and the way Louis arches his eyebrow at him whenever he sees it makes his stomach flutter.   They haven't talked about marriage yet, but they've been through forced closeting and eleven years of life with each other so Harry's pretty sure that they're forever.  He's not worried about it; even without a paper from the City Hall, he knows that their love is true and meant to be.

Harry meets Niall in one of his business classes and he's immediately enamored.  Niall knows who he is, and literally drops every one of his textbooks when they meet eyes.  Harry thinks it's sweet, and after helping Niall gather his stuff, they get coffee.   He introduces Niall to Louis afterward, and Niall turns bright red because it turns out Louis is actually his favorite of the duo.  It makes Harry cross, but at the way Louis preens, it passes quickly and he spends the time instead regaling Niall with embarrassing stories of his boyfriend and enjoying the way red flourishes over his love's cheeks.

Naill's bubbly, and normal in every way possible, and both boys relish being in the Irish lad's presence.  He takes about a year to get over their stardom, and still stammers endearingly whenever they call him up.   So it's extremely boggling when Harry walks into Naill's flat one day to see him being hugged from behind by one tall, gorgeous, and very famous model.

He has sharp cheekbones and smoldering eyes, and he stares intently at Harry with a puzzled look before Niall introduces him.   They've known each other since they were children, and apparently Zayn's stardom doesn't affect Niall one bit.  Niall's rather obliviously rude about it when Harry questions him on it; Niall doesn't keep up with fashion so it still confuses him on why Zayn is famous.

Louis makes his first friend after becoming famous in a not-so-normal way.  He finds Liam Payne holed up in the library at Louis' favoritetable, and he immediately tries to use his fame to intimidate Liam into finding another place to sit.  Liam's unamused, and Louis has to resort to pranks to try and get him to leave.  It doesn't work, and somewhere inbetween all the hostility (from Louis' part really, Liam's too sweet to even try to retaliate), Louis adopts Liam as his and suddenly their group of four is five.

It's domestic, their four years in college.  They host dinner parties together, study late until night, have sex a few times a day, and try an amazing amount of different kinds of food.  They still go to events, and their social media accounts still host a grand number of followers (which they take advantage of to show off their absolutely adorable cat that Niall had basically shoved onto them as well as their cute romantic gestures such as Louis' first home-cooked meal that turned out more romantic than Harry would have thought it would be) but all in all, their four years there is overwhelmingly normal.

And it's alright.  The life of fame is behind them, and they're trying to be normal, but deep down inside, Harry knows he's anything butnormal.  He doesn't bring it up though, content to stew on it in only his most private thoughts, so he's completely shocked when Louis sits him down one day in front of the piano.

"I've been writing a song, and I know we said we're done with fame.  With touring and with fans and all that you know, comes with becoming Harry&Louis again.  Which, if we do start again, we'll have to change the name, because really, whose bright idea was it to putyour name first.  We all know who is the more important one of this duo."

Harry laughs, "You're rambling."

Louis pouts, "So what if I'm nervous.  You never even like hinted that you'll be down with this."

Harry folds his hands onto the top of Louis', "Whatever you want, Lou, I'll be okay with."

Louis scowls, and is probably about to make a nasty retort, when suddenly his eyes brighten up.  "Does that mean you'll get my name tattooed on your arse?"

Harry sighs deeply, but he's laughing a second later and Louis joins in. 

When they sober up, Louis presses the pads of his fingertips to the stark white of the piano keys.  "You're the first one to hear this, you know," he whispers, the words soft in the tension of the room.  Harry's immediately pressing his thigh into Louis' as a sign of comfort, and he lays his fingers against the petals of Louis' pink cherry blossom tattoo.  Even years later, it still brings visible comfort to Louis and then he's pressing the keys down.

The piano notes are crisp and clear in the spring air, and Harry closes his eyes to hear them better.

Louis' voice is tender as he sings along with the soft melody and Harry knows without a doubt that it's about the two of them.

"Cause nobody knows you, baby, the way I do.  And nobody loves you, baby, the way I do.  It's been so long, it's been so long, maybe we're fireproof.  Because nobody saves me, baby, the way you do."

He's only singing the chorus, the verses and the lines probably still unwritten, but the song feels right and Harry feels as if he's finally come back home.  Because while college was fun, and it's taught them so much, he knows that they're meant for music. 

He's pressing his lips against Louis' as soon as the music dies out and Louis' ragged breath can be clearly heard in the silent room.  "That was brilliant, Lou."

"It's about you," he whispers into Harry's curls.

"It better be," growls Harry, and Louis lets out a startled laugh.

"Possessive jerk."

Harry giggles before dragging Louis onto his lap.  Louis stiffens at the erection he could probably feel straining at his pants and Harry's breathing hot air against his love's cheek.  "Jesus Christ, Lou," he breathes out, his eyes blown wide in lust, "I forgot how hot it is when you sing."

"I sing you a love song and all you want is sex?  Bloody unbelievable you are," complains Louis, but he doesn't protest when Harry moves his hands to rest them upon Louis' hard-on. 

"Looks like you're just as bad," he whispers, in the most seductive way he can manage, and then he's holding Louis up against the piano.

* * *

Fireproof hits #1 in the charts a month later.  It happens around the same time as they graduate, and the surge of popularity is baffling to the two of them.  They do their first interview in years, and the reporters are falling over themselves to ask them questions. 

Everyone and their grandmothers know the song is about the two of them.  But the interviewer still holds her hand to her heart when Louis confirms it, and she looks as if she's about to pass out at the confirmation.  She's able to get a hold of herself a second later, and shyly asks if Harry could explain why he calls Louis his sunflower. 

Harry visibly perks up and he's sure the smile that spreads across his face could only be described as fond.  "I met Louis when I was seven, and there was this awful sunflower there and it was so gaudy and bright yellow but there was this boy and he was just as bright and it was scary at first, but as time went on, the brightness started to become a good thing.  Louis' bright and sometimes, it's so bright it's harmful, but sometimes, the brightness is all that's good in the world.   He protected me when I was at my worst and he's been there for me since the very beginning.  The sunflower's like a sun you know, and Louis is like that for me.  Sometimes, I just sit and admire him and get energy just by being near him."

Louis turns bright red and his grip on Harry's knee is close to bruising.  "Oh my god, Harry, stop!

Harry grins, "Why?"

"You can't just say these kinds of things!  We're in an interview!  No one wants to know how gone you are for me."

The interviewer mutters what suspiciously sounds like, "Of course we want that," but she's clearing her throat rather noisily a second later.

"And what about you, Louis?   Your cherry blossom tattoo was meant for Harry, as well, right?"

Louis is still bright red, and he's nervously twisting his fingers into the soft folds of Harry's shirt.  "I mean, it's Harry's favorite flower.  He still forces me to go to that festival every year, you know.  And well, I mean, it's kinda embarrassing, but the first time we met, he had one weaved into his hair.  He looked like an elf, almost unreal."

"I didn't know you thought that," Harry says.

Louis laughs, rolling his eyes afterward.  "You don't know everything, Harold."

Harry pouts, and Louis leans forward to peck him chastely on the lips.

The flash of a camera goes off, and the picture is splashed over the entirety of the Internet.

* * *

The worst time of Harry's entire life happens a year later.  The critics poke fun at the fact that Louis can't write any sad songs, which isn't a bad thing, per se, but there's only so many sappy love songs they can produce.  Louis tries to dredge up the memories of the bad stuff in his life, but none of it translates well to a song.  Louis is stressed which makes Harry stressed, and Louis snaps that since Harry couldn't write for shit, he might as well not be there.  The words make Harry retort angrily and suddenly they're having the worst fight of their relationship, bringing up things that are better left unsaid.

Harry storms out afterward and makes himself at home at Niall's house, and Zayn quietly leaves to Louis'.

They don't break up, but they don't talk for a month.  It's awful, and Harry spends the month in a daze only punctuated by Niall and Zayn's worried faces.  Niall and Zayn switch off tending to either one of them between their busy work schedule, and Harry's ever so grateful that he met the two of them in college.

He's penning a song by the time he's lucid, and he's god-awful at music but Niall's there and he helps him compose a melody on a guitar. 

He barges into their flat to the sight of Louis slumped over on their dining table.  Louis startles awake, his eyes bloodshot and tear streaks visible on his cheeks, and Harry's heart clenches painfully at the sight.

"I - I'm," he stammers and then cuts himself off because he knows apologies are meaningless.  Louis knows he's sorry, just as he knows Louis is.

He busies himself by grabbing the guitar that is still set on the wall in their living room before settling himself comfortably down on a chair.  He's not good with a guitar, rather abysmal at it, but they're simple chords and he's able to strum along a melody.

He sings along to it, making sure Louis knows he means every word.  "And being here without you is like I'm waking up to only half a blue sky, kinda there but not quite.  I'm walking around with just one shoe, I'm half a heart without you.  I'm half a man at best, with half an arrow in my chest.  I miss everything we do, I'm half a heart without you."

Louis looks noticeably more awake now, and he looks stricken.  "Did we break up?" he asks quietly and Harry's shaking his head.

"Lou, you're tattooed on my skin.  We're forever."

Louis relaxes and then stiffens up a second later.  "Holy shit, you wrote a song."

Harry's smile is more real this time and he sets the guitar down against the wall before making his way over to his love.  "You were so worried about writing a sad song and well, it just kinda came to me?"

"It's brilliant, Hazza, really."  Louis nuzzles into Harry's embrace, and Harry lets out a sigh of contentment on how right it feels.  "But never again, okay?  Even if it comes with a grammy-award winning song, you are never to leave me for so long."

And Harry's murmuring his promises against Louis' skin, and he feels as if he's finally in the sun again.

* * *

"I wrote a song," mumbles Louis.

Harry blinks; they're at Louis' birthday celebration and most of their family members are there.  Zayn and Niall are next to the chocolate fountain with Zayn feeding most of the chocolate-covered fruits to Niall, and Liam has his arm around a pretty brunette called Sophia.  Ed Sheeran is there as well, which baffles Harry because Ed is more of a friend to Harry than he is to Louis.  

"When?" he settles on asking after he's finished chewing his bite of one of the snacks offered.

Louis' smile is shy and he presses into Harry's side.  "You look beautiful in white, Harry."

Harry's puzzled, and he furrows his brow in confusion.  "Why did you want me to wear a white suit?  Is this a secret kink of yours that I don't know about?"

Louis makes a scandalized noise, "Really, Harry, does everything have to be about that with you?  What if I just thought white is your color?"

"Because it's not my color."

"Harry, you look wonderful in everything."

He sighs, "Since it's your birthday..."

Louis brightens up, "It is, isn't it?  I'll very much like you to listen to my new song now."

He's tapping the side of his glass a while later with one of his forks, and everyone starts to drift over.  Louis' smile is brilliant, and then suddenly someone is wheeling a piano out onto the grass.  The piano is clear and it's littered to the top with cherry blossom and sunflower petals.  It makes his breath hitch, and he's meeting Louis' shy gaze a second later. 

"What," he mouths silently, but Louis is resolutely shaking his head.  There's a determined tilt to his smile, and then suddenly Niall is there, pressing a cherry blossom into Louis' hand.  Louis takes it and then weaves it into Harry's hair.  "Just like the first time I saw you, Harry," he murmurs, and Harry's sure he's bright red right now.  "You're so otherworldly, almost as if you don't belong here on Earth and it's amazing I get to keep you."

Louis' off as soon as he's done murmuring the words and he plops himself down onto the piano seat.  Everyone's quiet, even the birds, and it seems as if the whole world is holding its breath.  They're in a field of sunflowers (they're in California because it's always sunny there and the only place to actually see a field of flowers in the midst of winter) by Harry's own request, but Harry only has eyes for his love.

The piano notes are easy to hear in the silence, and Louis' voice is accompanying it in a manner of seconds.

"Not sure if you know this, but when we first met, I got so nervous I couldn't speak.  In that very moment, I found the one and my life had found its missing piece.  So long as I live I'll love you, will have and hold you, you look so beautiful in white.  And from now till my very last breath, this day I'll cherish, you look so beautiful in white."

The song tinkers out on a beautiful melodic playing of the keys, and Louis looks nervous as he gets up from the piano seat.  Harry's legs are moving him forward before he can even process what he's doing, and he's drawing Louis into a kiss as soon as he gets there.  He deepens it even though they're in front of everyone and Louis' knees are weak and he sinks into the piano seat as soon as Harry lets go.

"Lou, I have to marry you," he tries to whisper.  But everyone's still silent so the words ring out clearly in the winter air.

Louis gasps and then he's smacking Harry on the right arm.  "Are you kidding me!?  Harry Styles, try to read the atmosphere before you go off spouting stupid things!"

His heart sinks, "You don't want to?"

Louis makes a frustrated noise, "The song!?  Did you even listen to the lyrics, you dolt?"

Harry frowns, "Erm, well..."

Louis groans, and then he's sliding off the piano seat to get on one knee.  Harry blinks at the wonderful sight his boyfriend makes down on one knee amidst sunflowers before he suddenly gets it.

"Oh," he breathes out happily, and Louis is fondly rolling his eyes.  Louis is presenting him a ring a second later, and it's diamond encrusted and beautiful. 

"Harry Edward Styles, will you marry me?"

He's pulling Louis up immediately, pressing clumsy lips against his fiance.  He's shaking so hard that it's hard to aim his kisses, but the way Louis is laughing openly and free makes up for the way his kiss ends on his nose instead of his mouth.  He's pulling Louis' smaller body flush up against his chest, and it feels right to have Louis mold into him.  "Of course," he murmurs again and again, "I'll marry you a hundred, no a thousand times."

"Just once will do," quips Louis, and then their friends are crowding in on their private moment and he hears Niall's crow of happiness over the loud din. 

* * *

The song is leaked by one of their family members, and the disruption it causes ensures that Louis and Harry don't have time to find out who's the culprit.  The proposal is uploaded on YouTube and it's grainy and horrible, so they end up uploading their own version of it.  Louis' voice is crisp and clear on the new HD video, and the fans go crazy when it's confirmed they're actually engaged.

They record a duet of Louis' proposal song, and it reaches #1 in the charts the day it's released.  Louis is hesitant at first; he doesn't want to share the song that helped him propose to Harry, but the fans are insistent.

Their wedding is a big affair.  Harry feels a little bit like a prince when it's finally over with.  They get married in a fancy chapel that's overflowing with a mixture of sunflowers and cherry blossoms.  It feels cheesy, but the yellow and the pink match each other, so Harry and Louis just let the wedding planners do as they want.  The wedding's not really for them anyway.  Both of them would be fine with just a small getaway with just their family and friends, but the fans have been there every step of the way - even through their four year hiatus - and they want to give back to them.

They can't fit everyone in the chapel, so they open the large windows and close off the streets so the fans can listen in.  They're able to fashion in large TV's for the fans in front of the church and the two of them walk through the fans after they're married.

Their honeymoon is spent at home, because Harry gets the rather brilliant idea of buying a puppy a few weeks before the wedding and becoming far too attached to actually leave.  Louis grumbles and pretends to mind, but really, they've traveled the whole world already, his honeymoon can be spent anywhere as long as it's with Harry.

Married life doesn't feel any different than normal.  They're already domestic, is the thing, so nothing really changes for them.  The rings and wedding pictures are a nice touch, and it's nice to know that Harry is his lawfully wedded husband, but really, nothing's really different.

They go through life as they've always been, and Harry thinks that's rather the most beautiful thing of all.  Because they've been practically married since they met, and no piece of paper from the city hall will change that.

They do stop touring a year after their marriage, and it's only a few weeks later that Harry learns the reason why.  Life on the road is nice and Harry always enjoys meeting their fans, but they can't raise a baby like that.

Louis tells him over dinner one night and Harry can't stop his excited babble and chatter about it on social media for the next few weeks.  He's lucky their fans are so supportive of his love for children or else management probably would have scolded him.

They name her Darcy, because Harry's been dreaming about this even before Louis came into his life.  Niall is her godfather through sheer will alone; his tenacity makes it difficult for Liam or Zayn to argue with him and they give up before the fight even begins.   Writing songs get pushed to the background and suddenly Harry's life is just Darcy, Darcy, Darcy.  Which is just how he likes it, and for the next few years, that's all Harry knows.

Louis doesn't mind, and when Darcy is five years old and they've just dropped her off at her new kindergarten (in which Harry cried a lot) Louis off-handedly mentions that he's thinking about writing songs again. 

They don't have to worry about money anymore because of their huge success in their earlier years and if they truly wanted to, they could probably cruise through the rest of their life without taking a job with little to no problems.

But the money isn't what they're after, and it's only a year later that Harry and Louis both decide to invest in a record company.  Louis songwrites, and Harry uses his business degree to manage the company and it's nice.  For the first time, they're actually working normal hours, and when they go home, it's to home cooked dinners with their daughter. 

She deals with fame surprisingly well, and when she grows up into a beautiful, young lady her blasé attitude with paps make it increasingly hard for them to approach her.  She's spirited and outspoken, so it's not a surprise when she comes home with a boyfriend the first day of high school.  Harry bursts into tears at the announcement, and Louis awkwardly pats his husband on the back as he tries to have a stern lecture with their daughter. 

It doesn't work, but the boy isn't all around bad and they have him over for dinner more often than not.  They get married after college, and it's sweet to think that their little girl found her soulmate earlier on in her life.

* * *

They grow old together, suffering aching bones and failing hearing together.  It shouldn't be easy, but it is because they have each other.  Their daughter grows old and gives them grandchildren, and the little rascals are enough to fill up their days when they want to see other people than each other.

Niall and Zayn finally adopt a little boy after Zayn finally retires from work as a model.   He's small and cute and Harry dotes on him whenever the two of them visit.  Even through all the years, they're still as close as ever, and the two of them, along with Liam and Sophia, come over to visit twice a month.

It's not easy losing people they know and love, and Harry's there for Louis when his grandfather passes away.  The funeral is a somber occasion and it's all Harry can do to keep his love's mind off all the despair and gloom.

That's the worst part of growing old, the loss of those that had meant so much to them.  They suffer through it together, and even all these years later Harry still knows all the ways to make his love laugh.

Harry's whole life has been about Louis, after all, ever since he was seven and saw the sunflower on the ground.   Even now, Louis still reminds him of the sun, all bright and energetic and beautiful, and Harry's still grateful every day that he's able to call Louis his own. 

When he was seven, he would have never imagined that it would have ended up like this.  With his heart barely able to hold all the love he has for Louis and with a life behind them full of love, laughter, and fame.  He couldn't have ever done any of it without Louis, and it's with quiet words that Louis says the same thing late one summer night.

It's scary when things come to an end, but it's the way life goes and fear of the unknown can hardly get a grip on them when they're already holding so tight onto each other.  They live life as they always have, and it's only sad when they have to say good bye to their friends and family.

When it all comes to a close, they're asleep under sunflowers and cherry blossoms and it's an ending to one of the sweetest stories ever told.

* * *

Harry, my love, my cherry blossom, my everything,

I was seven when I first saw you.  The cherry blossom only added to the strangeness of that day, and even now I can still see the startling pink hue of it when I close my eyes.  I've never really understood the fascination of that flower until I met you.   

My whole life's been about you.  From the very moment we met and to the last moment in which we'll have to part.  But only temporarily because I know we'll be together in the afterlife.  Death could hardly be that cruel to keep us apart when we've already proved over and over again we belong together.

Because we do.  We're different, but our differences only disappear when we're together.  Obviously, the world agrees because they've been supporting our duo act for ages now.  Life in the spotlight should have made things harder.  Being trapped in the closet should have made this relationship disintegrate but it didn't.  It hardly even made a dent.  Even now, I just look back on those early days with fondness because even though we hadn't talked about our feelings yet, those days were just you and me.  Against the world.  We went to auditions and smashed it.  We made friends, but only had eyes for each other during the whole competition.  And it's always been that way, hasn't it? Even back in our earlier days, when all I wanted to do was play football and all you wanted to do was play dolls with the girls, you've always been my favorite.  I think our mums knew before we did.  Aren't we silly?

I'm good with words.  I know that sounds conceited, but countless number one singles will do that to you.  All my love songs have been about you.  You know that, though.  And of course, that means the angry ones have been about you, as well, but what's love without passion?  We fought, and sometimes it was bad, and we had rough patches.  But we've been together for so many years that I've lost count (not really, it's been fifty seven years and three hours and seven minutes since I first laid eyes on you - what are you talking about, Hazza, that's totally the correct number), that the rough patches are to be expected and dealt with easily.  

Anyway, what I mean is that I've said it a million times in a million different ways.  I love you.  You're my everything.  I am yours.  You're my cherry blossom.  I'm your sunflower.  

You've heard it all.

I know you have.  But still, even brilliant writer as I am, I still can't even attempt to describe the love I feel for you.  Sometimes, I think my heart can't even contain it.  And I know that's cliche.  And it sounds like I'm just spouting fluffy words in order to help you calm down and prepare for the inevitable ending of it all.  

But it's true.  

I love you because it's all I've ever known, ever since I was eleven and had to bottle up my fear of being different from the others, of being queer, to do so.  I love you because you're Harry, you're you with your horrible puns and your quirky fashion sense and your tendency to force healthy freshly blended smoothies down my throat (I swear, Harry, our fridge is stocked to the top with kale, please stop buying it). I just love you, listing out a multitude of reasons may not help, but it's all I can do but to try and word this.  Because 'I love you's' stop having an effect after the thousandth time of saying it, but I still mean every fucking last syllable.

I'm rambling.  You're going to read this letter and shake your head, because even fifty-seven years later I'm still writing you long letters that say approximately the same thing over and over and think that somehow these carefully crafted words can somehow portray what I feel for you.  It's easier writing it all down and composing my thoughts than to blurt it all out.  And you'll grumble and complain, but you'll read it all, won't you?  Read it all and know just how much you mean to me, and how much you'll always mean to me even when it's over.  I still remember that first valentines', when I wrote you a five page essay about the things I want to do with you, and now years later, it's all been crossed off.  We got married.  We have a daughter; we have grandchildren.  We have three more matching tattoos.  (The ship and the compass.  The rose and the dagger.  The rope and the anchor.)  We spent every last day together, every fucking day and I don't regret a minute of it.  

I don't know what else to say, babe.

It's scary.   Knowing that death is just around the corner.

It's terrifying, knowing that one day I may wake up to an empty bed.  Even more horrifying, the thought that it'll be you waking up to it.  I'll always want to protect you.  I hope it's me first.

Death is an ending.  But it's also a beginning.  I know with every inch of my body that we'll be together in the afterlife.  We're connected, after all.  Entwined so tightly that there won't even be a possibility of being pried apart.

My whole life's been about you, Harry.  And I wouldn't have it any other way.

Still so deeply in love,

your sunflower,

Louis Tomlinson.

 

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed!!!! :') I always like writing these kinds of fics for every fandom I joined so I figured One Direction was due one. i just really really like beautiful in white :') it's such a gorgeous song and i would love to have myself proposed to with that song *cough cough* boyfriend *cough cough* haha. anyway the sunflower and cherry blossom references may have been overused >> but hope you guys enjoy anyway! please leave kudos and comments because they make me smile and write more :D.
> 
> \-- edit: added in the last letter because i wrote a letter to my bf and i had this line "I drive you. You swallow your fear and let me." and then wrote Louis' letter to Harry. I left it ambiguous, but Louis is dying of something other than old age. I debated adding in another section about them in their afterlife, together, but I didn't want to deal with adding in religious things because I don't want to offend anyone. But let's just say they are happily in heaven right now. Hopefully this shouldn't have to be tagged as major character death because i left it as ambiguous as I could.


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